Brunson's One-Word Slap to the Scouts: "They Missed Everything"

Brunson's statement came after the New York Knicks' training before the third match of the NBA Finals. At the press conference held on Sunday, in response to the question from journalists "What did the scouts miss about you in the 2018 Draft?", the 28-year-old point guard answered with just one word. According to ClutchPoints reporter Kris Pursiainen, the captain answered with a smile "Everything." This statement of Brunson echoed widely in the NBA media.

Looking at the 2018 NBA Draft, Brunson's story presents a truly different picture. Brunson, who won two NCAA championships in three years he spent at Villanova University and was selected the NCAA Player of the Year in 2018, was picked 33rd by Dallas Mavericks on the night of the draft. Among the 32 players lined up before him are today's brightest names in the NBA such as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Luka Doncic and Trae Young; however, there are also many names in the rest of the list who could not reach Brunson's career rise. The main reasons behind Brunson falling to the second round were shown as defensive problems and having a relatively older age after three years at the college level.

Brunson's career was not fully evaluated at Dallas Mavericks either. The Mavericks let the point guard, who spent four seasons in the Texas team, go in free agency in 2022, and Brunson transferred to New York by signing a four-year contract with the Knicks. Since this transfer, Brunson, who has become a star in the Knicks jersey, won the NBA's Clutch Player of the Year award in the 2024-25 season, and was selected as the Eastern Conference Finals MVP in the 2025-26 season. The captain's All-Star selections reached three, and he was also selected to the All-NBA team three times.

Although the Knicks are 2-0 ahead in the final series, Brunson's series performance has so far remained below expectations. Despite this, the team became the first team to make a 2-0 start away by winning both matches at the Frost Bank Center; this achievement was last realised by the 1995 Houston Rockets. The Knicks will host the San Antonio Spurs at Madison Square Garden tonight and will have the chance to carry the series to 3-0. Brunson finding his shooting form from the perimeter in front of the New York fans constitutes the critical stage of the Knicks' path to ending the 27-year championship drought. The match will start at 03:30 on Tuesday morning June 9 by Turkish time.

Image: eurosport.com.tr